Weekend Box Office Report: ‘One Direction: This is Us’ Takes the Lead

The summer is over and September is upon us. The result? One of the most boring weekend box office reports in months. Months! The month or so following the end of the summer movie season is traditionally one of the worst of the year, the time when Hollywood unleashes all of the films that they have little faith in, a buffer between the blockbuster months and the award season months. In other words, it's the exact kind of climate where a movie like 'One Direction: This is Us' can thrive.

Film

Weekend

Per Screen

1

One Direction: This is Us

$17,000,000

$6,216

$17,000,000

2

The Butler

$14,742,000 (-10.7)

$4,427

$74,007,000

3

We're the Millers

$12,610,000 (-3.4)

$3,660

$109,565,000

4

Planes

$7,756,000 (-9.6)

$2,380

$70,884,000

5

Instructions Not Included

$7,500,000

$21,614

$7,500,000

6

Elysium

$6,300,000 (-9.0)

$2,481

$78,404,000

7

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones

$5,200,000 (-44.3)

$1,668

$22,654,000

8

The World's End

$4,759,000 (-46.0)

$3,064

$16,568,000

9

Getaway

$4,500,000

$2,115

$4,505,000

10

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters

$4,425,000 (-16.1)

$1,849

$54,965,000

Morgan Spurlock's advertisement-disguised-as-a-documentary opened at number one with $17 million, a solid number that essentially guarantees the film's profitability. However, much like the band at the heart of the film, it's sure to completely vanish off the face of the earth in the next few years.

Far more interesting than the opening of 'One Direction: This is Us' is the continued success of 'The Butler' and 'We're the Millers,' which are showcasing some extraordinary legs. In its third weekend of release, 'The Butler' dropped only 10%, making $14 million for a $74 million total. $100 million is all but assured now. 'We're the Millers' dropped an extraordinary 3%, grossing $12 million for a $109 million gross. This is more important than you think it is, since both films are proof that movies can become blockbusters over time -- it's not all about massive openings. If people like a movie, more people will come.

Heck, that lesson also seems to apply to 'Planes.' It may not be doing 'Cars' business, but this weekend's 9% drop and the $70 million total suggest that this cheapie animated spin-off may not be the massive disappointment everyone thought it was a month ago.

The rest of the top 10 this week was almost ruthlessly uninteresting (although the surprise appearance of the almost-unknown 'Instructions Not Included' is pretty weird). 'Elysium' continued to trudge along, but it looks like it'll barely miss $100 million. 'The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones' continued to not do 'Twilight' business. The foolish populace continued to not see 'The World's End.' 'Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters' continued to hang around for some reason.

Oh, and 'Getaway' opened at number nine, but no one saw 'Getaway' so that's all we'll say about that.

Outside of the top 10, a few movies crossed important milestones. Woody Allen's 'Blue Jasmine' performed well in expanded release, crossing the $20 million mark. Paramount managed to push 'World War Z' over the $200 million mark and Warner Bros. dragged 'Pacific Rim' across $100 million.

Next weekend sees the release of 'Riddick,' which should snatch the number one spot by default.